Dana Chambers v. HHS - Influenza, Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (2022)

Dana Chambers, a 47-year-old family practice physician, filed a petition alleging that she developed Undifferentiated Connective Tissue Disease (UCTD), which later progressed to Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE), as a result of receiving the seasonal influenza and Tdap booster vaccines on October 7, 2016. Ms.

Chambers had a history of Raynaud syndrome since her teens and experienced various symptoms like back and leg pain, fatigue, and joint pain in the months leading up to and following her vaccinations. She was hospitalized in October 2016 for a pulmonary embolism and pneumonia.

Her condition was eventually diagnosed as SLE, which she argued was vaccine-induced. Petitioner presented expert testimony from Dr.

Thomas M. Zizic, a rheumatologist, who opined that the flu vaccine likely triggered her SLE through mechanisms like molecular mimicry and cited studies such as Wang et al. to support a vaccine-SLE association.

Respondent presented expert testimony from Dr. Jonathan D.

Miner, also a rheumatologist, who argued that it was extremely unlikely the vaccines could cause SLE and that Ms. Chambers' symptoms and medical history were more consistent with an underlying autoimmune predisposition and a possible infectious process.

The court reviewed the evidence, including expert testimony and medical literature, and found that Petitioner failed to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that the vaccines could cause SLE or that they actually caused her condition. The court noted that Ms.

Chambers had pre-existing symptoms consistent with SLE and that the post-vaccination timeline was more indicative of a coincidental association with a chronic condition rather than a direct vaccine reaction. Therefore, the petition for entitlement was denied.